Shortly after Kalyan Banerjee took over as TMC Lok Sabha chief whip from senior leader Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, the Barasat MP resigned Sunday from her post as organisational district president. She criticised the hiring of political consultancy firm I-PAC, claiming it caused major disruption and harmed the party. Her son indicated she may also resign as MP.
In a letter to TMC West Bengal president Subrata Bakshi, Dastidar accepted responsibility for the party’s weak showing in Barasat and urged Mamata Banerjee to depend on long-serving workers instead of outside advisers. She became the second senior TMC figure after Banerjee to fault I-PAC for recent setbacks.
Dastidar told reporters that the consultancy firm lay at the heart of the party’s problems and had destroyed its structure. She noted she had not hired the firm and described interference from young consultants who issued orders to veteran workers. With four decades in politics, she expressed frustration at being directed by recent arrivals.
In the letter, she advised Banerjee that relying on committed older members would improve the party’s standing and that short-term agencies could not handle complex tasks. She also highlighted rising public concern over crime and graft in West Bengal, calling for stronger transparency, accountability and adherence to democratic values.
A day after losing the whip position, Dastidar posted on social media about her long association with the party since the 1970s and questioned the reward for decades of service, prompting speculation about her future.
Her son Baidyanath Ghosh Dastidar said she had also quit as head of the party’s women’s wing and might leave Parliament. He noted the family had faced reputational damage from state government controversies and pointed to the loss of six of seven assembly seats in the constituency. He said she was distancing herself from corruption while remaining personally close to Banerjee, and ruled out any move to the BJP.
